Currently the leadership of both the House and the Senate are engaged in ongoing discussions with President Obama about the future of our country. The negotiations center around the amount of debt the federal government can incur. Unfortunately, because of continued out-of-control spending, we are facing a situation where Congress is once again being asked to increase that amount in order to avoid default.

In February, Congressman Robert Hurt voted to support a measure to block funding for all federal work to restore the Chesapeake Bay and its tributary rivers. Ironically, these include long stretches of the polluted Appomattox , James, and Rivanna rivers flowing through his district.

By the time you read this it’s possible that a deal has already been reached on the debt ceiling crisis.

Even if that is the case, and we’ve successfully avoided a U.S. default, there are still some political lessons that remain.
First, Republicans need to stop trying to fool everyone about how jobs are created. Rich people do not create jobs. Period. That is a conservative myth, particularly a Reagan myth.

I’m an optimist of sorts. If somebody says, “It can’t get any worse,” I’ll reply, “Oh yes it can!” I usually tend to see the glass as half empty and think that every silver lining has a dark cloud. I also tend to waste a lot of time crossing bridges that I never actually get to.

A mid-day blaze destroyed a single family home at 1229 Oregon Trail, south of Bedford, Wednesday.

According to Marci Stone, the county’s assistant fire chief, nobody was at home at the time the fire started. A relative, who lives nearby, saw smoke and called 911. The house was fully involved when the first units arrived.